Transposition device



I. ZEPEDA TRANSPOSITION DEVICE April 7, 1925.

gwue'ntop [may Zeeaa atkozmug Z V N k Filed Aug. .1 1922 Patented Apr. 7, 1925.

UNITED stares ISAIAS ZEPEDA, T1 SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS.

'rnansrosrrron" :onvron.

Application filed August 2, 1922. Serial No. 579,231.

. To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IsAiAs Znrnoa, a citizen of Mexico, residing at San Antonio, in the county of Bexar, State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in TranspositionDevices; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the inven tion, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates tonew and useful improvements in transposition devices,

oharacterby means of which the keyboard of a piano may be shifted from right to left, and vice versa, to raise or lower the pitch, for the accommodation of instruments and voices.

" Another object is to provide a device of this character which may be readily applied to the ordinary piano, without'radical modifications to the piano, and which will not alter the appearance thereof.

Other-objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings: V Flgure 1 1s a front elevation of a por tion, of a piano, with a portion-of the front 7 19 are regularly spaced at distances equal board, of the keyboard removed.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view on p the line 2-2 of Figure 1, passing longitudinally through the center of one of the white keys. V

Figure 3 is, a bottom plan view of the slidable board,which moves-the keyboard of the piano,-showing the gear and rack connections.- Y

Referring particularly to the accoinpanying drawing, 10 and llrepresent the longitudinally extending strips, below the keyboard of the. piano, each strip having a longitudinally.extending groove in its inner vertical face, as shown at 12. Disposed board 1 1. This board supports the inner and outer rows 15'and 16, of vertical pins,

the former being the fulcrums of the keylevers 17, while the latter-enter the lower faces of the key-levers to prevent horizontal rocking movement thereof, as willbe more clearly explained later herein. Each of the key-levers 17 is separated at 18, from the main portion thereof, at points immediately in rear of the upper front board of the music shelf of the piano. In the bottom wall of the channel beneath the keyboard, and directly below the front and rear edges of the board 1 1, are the upwardly impelled spring pressed pins 19, which are arranged to enter the openings or recesses 20, formed in the lower face of the said board, for thepurpose of'maintaining the board against accidental longitudinal movement. Y i

liormed transversely in the inner end of the outer, or ivory covered portion of each key-lever, is a channel, or kerf 21, which receives the flat portion of the stem 22, which is secured in the forward end face of the rear portionof the key-lever. When the stems are properly disposed in the kerfs, the key-levers may be operated in the usual manner, rocking the entire lever on thejfront pin 15. 'lVhen the board 1 1 is moved longitudinally beneath the-keyboard,

the outer portions of the key-levers will be moved therewith, by virtue of the engagement of the pins 15 and 16 within the lower face of the outer or playing portions of the levers, the spring pressed pins 19 entering the openings or recesses in the bottom of the board 1 1. It will be noted that the pins to the width of a1 key-lever, so that upon shifting the board 1 1, the operator will be able to know when the stems22 properly register with the kerfs of the front portions of the key-levers.

Properly supported in' a vertical position in' the bottom of the channel beneath the keyboard, and extending downwardly therethrough, where it is provided with a transverse handle 23, is a shaft 2 1, the same having on its upper end a gear25 which meshes with-a rack 26 secured to the lower 'face of the board l l, adjacent the front longer edge thereof. By this means, the board 141113.3 be shifted to the right or left, according to the desire of the operator, as to whether the pitch is to be raised or lowered. Also, it will be readily understood that, when the board 14, and the keyboard are shifted, the front portions of the keylevers engage with different inner key lever portions, with the result that when one of the keys isstruck, a different inner key-lever will be operated, and a higher or lower tone produced.

Great difficulty is sometimes experienced in tuning some instruments, and especially wind instruments, to a piano, because of the fact that the piano is of too low a .pitch, and the slides, by means of which the instru ment is tuned, cannot be drawn out enough. Also, some singers find the pitch of a piano too high for their voices. in the first case, the player of the piano simply shifts the keyboard toward the right, with the result that the pitch is raised. This may he done toraise the pitch one, two, or three tones, as desired. I In the other case, the keyboard must be shifted to the left, to lower the pitch, to accord withthe range of the singers voice. When the board is shifted in either direction, the rear pins 16 serve to prevent the frontportions of the key-levers from rocking horizontally onthe front pins 15, and getting out of alignment with the rear portions of the levers.

The block 27, at the left-hand end of the keyboard of the piano, is formed with a cavity 28, into which the corresponding end of the board 1.4:, and of the keyboard, are arranged to move, when the board isshifted toward the left, as when lowering the pitch.

. The block 29, at-the right-hand end of the keyboard is similarly formed with a cavity 30, to accommodate the corresponding end of the keyboard, when the same is shifted toward the right, as when raising the pitch.

In operating the transposition device,

the operator need only grasp the handle 23 and rotate the shaft 2st towardthe-right or left, as the case may be, until the pins 19 snap into the proper openings ofthe board 14.

hat is claimed is 1. A transposition device for pianos including key-levers having inner sections and outer sections, the outer sections having transverse kerfs in their inner ends opening through the sides of the sections and sockets in their lower faces, the inner sections havends of said. inner sections, the inner ends ing flat stems engaged in the said kerfs and.

arranged to pass into the kerfs of adjacent (intersections and slidable means having pins engaged in said sockets for shiftingthe outer sections transversely ofthe inner sec tions and into engagement with thestems of other inner sections.

2. A transposition device for pianos includingkey-levers having inner and outer sections, a slidable member rockably supguides on the piano supporting the slidable member, flat stems projecting from-the outer of the outer sections having transverse narrow openings shdably receiving said stems, detents on the p ano engaged with thesl dable member for releasably holding the slid-- able member in position with the openings of the outer sections of the lovers in registry with the stemsof the inner sections thereof, and means for shifting the slidable member.

3. A transposition device for pianos including a keyboard the key levers of which include inner relatively stationary sections and outer movable playing sections, slidable connections between the sections, a slidable member disposed. longitudinally be neath the keyboard and having-openings in its lower face and a toothed rack, spring pressed pins engaged in; the openings, a, gear engaged withthc rack, fulcrum means for the playing portions Oii'llllO levers carried by theslidablc member, means onthe slidable member and engaging with-the lastnamed portions of the levers for preventing lateral pivotal movement thereof, means at the ends of thepiano for receiving the ends of :the keyboard when the .latter is shifted, and means cont-he, gearforrotatiug the same.

4-,. A transposition'device for pianos including key- .levers having inner and outer sections, the outer sections having kerfs-in their inner ends opening throughthe sides of the sections and having sockets intheir lower faces,-the inner sections having stems engaged in said kerfs and arranged tc-ibe received in kerfs of adjacent outersections, slidable means for moving the outerv sections transversely of theinnersections and into engagement with said stems of other inner sections, selectively, said -sl-idablc means having means fonengagement in said sockets and means for moving'the slidable means.

5. A transposition device for pianos including key levers comprising inner and outer sections having connections for trans verse slidable movementin a common. plane, guides, a slidable member supported in the I guides and operatively. connected with said outer sections of the key levers, and means for moving .theslidable means for-engaging the said outer sections with adjacent Inner sections, selectively.

6. A- transposition device for pianos-including key levers comprising. stationary and movable sections, the latter of which are movable into and out of operative engagement with ad acent stationary sections at opposite sides thereof, ,selectively, and whileremaining in the sameplane there with, meansfor movingsaid movablesections, and meansfor moving thernoving porting the playing portions of the levers,.

transversely of the stationary sections into i and out of poslt on 1n. al nementwith ad ace -..sta ion ry.r ec on ec e c y, an

means for moving said outer sections, and means for releasably holding the outer set-,- tions in such alinement,

8. A transposition device for pianos including key levers comprising inner stationary sections and outer movable sections, the latter sections being movable transversely of and into and out of alinement withadjacent stationary sections, selectively, means on the stationary sections engaged with the movable sections for maintaining the latter sections in the same plane as that of the stationary sections during such movement and during the normal operation of the key levers, means for moving the movable sections, and means for releasably holding the movable sections in such selective alinement.

In testimony whereof, I aflix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ISAIAS ZEPEDA.

Vitnesses:

PEDRO GARGA, J. E. DIAZ. 

